~ Message in a Bottle History, Stories, and News

Search:

About Message in a Bottle Hunter

About Message in a Bottle Hunter – Why I Find Messages in Bottles

Ahoy! My name is Clint–I find messages in bottles and then share the stories of the people who sent them. I also help connect others who have sent or found messages in bottles, because, if you ask me, every new friendship makes the world…well, friendlier! And I think we could use a bit more of that, don’t you?

Here’s a little video about what I do and why.

I am perennially amazed by the power of messages in bottles. They may seem silly to some, but, personally, I find messages in bottles have the power to connect people in profound ways. Messages in bottles create real friendships between strangers; they make people care about each other–people who never even knew each other existed before. And, especially with older messages like this one, a message in a bottle may be the most important letter some ever receive.

Me With Bottles.

Messages in bottles have saved lives, led to marriage, and reunited folks with lost loved ones. In my view, there’s nothing silly about them. Except for the ones that are intended to be jokes, like this one. I found my first message in a bottle in 2007. I must have walked past several thousand bottles that day—I had almost zoned out when something caught my eye: a blue bottle lying right on the sand, like it had just washed up. There was something inside! I stumbled over to the bottle and held it up, examining the contents: bright orange paper rolled up tightly and tied with a piece of string that poked out the top of the bottle which had a rubber cork. Wrapped around the message inside were two US dollars.

First Message in a Bottle!

That bottle sparked something in me that led to finding more messages, and led to this blog. The idea of finding even a single message in a bottle had always enchanted me–but to find dozens of them?! How could I NOT write about it?!

Over time, I found that most people who send messages in bottles are wonderful, kind, friendly folks, who enjoy making friends with the person on the other end of their bottle.

Messages in Bottles Lead to Environmental Lesson

My hunt for messages in bottles started purely as a form of adventure–the thrill of finding them is intense! However, although I go looking for “treasure,” what I mostly find is trash. Looking for messages in bottles opened my eyes to the staggering problem of plastic pollution in our oceans.

The sheer volume of plastic trash on our beaches and in our seas is overwhelming and a little scary. We are entering uncharted waters here: we know that human life depends on the ocean, but we don’t know what will happen as more and more plastic ends up in the ocean.

I’ve also learned that marine critters are killed by plastic trash at a rate that is both alarming and difficult to measure precisely, due to the size of the ocean and the scale of plastic pollution. Whales, dolphins, sea turtles, and all kinds of sea-dwelling birds are dying everywhere with bellies full of plastic. I see the impact of plastic on marine life everywhere I look for messages in bottles. Check out this Osprey who built a nest using the very kinds of plastic ropes that can entangle its young and itself.

If you’ve been with me since the beginning of this blog, you know adventure drives this blog–the thrill of finding messages in bottles and journeying to meet the senders in distant places. That sense of adventure will always be at the heart of this blog and everything I do, every story I tell. It’s why I find messages in bottles, after all.

But there is a bigger adventure underway–one we can all join: the adventure of learning about plastic pollution, and doing something to stop it–even if it just means picking up a plastic bottle you see on the sidewalk (and definitely never sending a message in a plastic bottle).

I hope you’ll join me as I continue to find messages in bottles and meeting the folks who send them, while shedding light on the plastic pollution crisis along the way.

Message In A Bottle,– My girlfriend and I in 2012 were on a cruise in the Caribbean returning from St. Martin pitched a wine bottle (barefoot brand- greenish-clear color )- into the ocean from our balcony. We wrote a note , wrapped it rubber bands and sealed it with the cork and have often wondered where the bottle ended up ?– Dwight Dille & Connie Tincher from West Virginia. ( cell phone# 304-5539554 or 304-617-7536/ new # 304-963-1007).– Just curious if you would happen to have a bottle that meets that description in your treasures?– It was great reading the story of the note in the Coke bottle and reward ! Refreshing stories like this are few and far between , great to read them!. Keep it up!

Thanks Dwight! I really appreciate you reading and also sharing your story! 🙂 I don’t think I have a bottle matching that description, but I will be sure to check. And I’ll certainly keep an eye out for it!

I am other the moon you found my message in the bottle clintI am getting loads of people contacting me from the papersits spooky that my name is Clinton and all my frenids call me clintthat’s me nick nameand a person called clint goes and finds itwhats the chances in that just un realso to clint buffington god bless you and thank you

Hi Clint! I recently discovered your name and your quirky hobby. I’m very impressed by the story of Paula Pierce and the bottle of Coke of his father .. I think the message in the bottle is an eccentric but wonderful way of communicating and expressing a great desire to relate to others. I consider you very much and I hope you’ll continue to patrol the coast in search of more and more romantic and bizarre messages. I’ll always keep it updated .. I apologize for my bad English!Many greetings from ItalyL

Hey i am Bruce LaClair the other half of the marriage message from the bottle you found launched from the bridge over the Delaware river in New Hope 1981. It is so cool that you found our message I am wondering where exactly did you find the bottle my e mail is laclair.bruce@gmail.com Looking forward to hearing from you.